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Minami doesn't consider her appearance anything special. She has straight, blue hair that reaches to about her mid-upper arms when not in its normal ponytail and bangs. She has green, round eyes that are fairly big. She does, much like all members of 00 have heart linings in her eyes and hair. There are also, for an unknown reason, three extra lines in her eyes that connect to a point.

Wearing her hair in a ponytail was something she picked up after she succeeded, as her hair was generally too short for it, and the few times she did, she had to get extensions. Her hair used to just about reach her shoulders, aside of two strands of hair that were longer, and hung down infront of her shoulders. These two strands are now the same length as the rest of the hair, and has blended into it because of that.

On the contrary to her original member, Minami has a rather acceptable fashion sense. She doesn't particularly follow any specific fashion trends, but does tend to stray towards modest, modern clothes. She does value comfort a lot though, and it is often a deciding factor whenever she goes shopping for clothes. Normally, Minami sticks to two to three colours in her casual clothes, usually pastel. She is almost never seen without a matching ribbon in her hair.

Minami doesn't consider herself as anything special. This doesn't mean she isn't self-confident, however, as she simply considers herself on the same level as everyone else, and that's all the confidence she needs.

She is both determined and hardworking, and knows that if she really wants something and is willing to work hard enough for it, then she is able to achieve it.

Compared to some other members, Minami is by no means dependent on her phone, but she does always keep hers nearby for the simple sake of being able to practise choreography and lyrics at any available time in order to cut down on the time she needs during rehearsals. This is in part to make things easier for the people around her, as the sooner she knows them by heart, the less of others' time she'll need.

Although she doesn't always voice it, she does have strong beliefs regarding right and wrong, and isn't one to back down whenever those morales are questioned or disputed. While she doesn't entirely realize it herself, this is the easiest way for her stubborn side to show.

Before she was appointed as Team A's captain, Minami wasn't all that well versed in leadership. This has, however, changed as she has gotten more experience, and isn't afraid to take charge of a situation if she has to, even if this is in secret; She is known to lend a discreet hand to WMiya's victims to help them out a bit. Otherwise, she tends to observe from a distance in order to not be overbearing, and similarly, she has learnt to keep an eye out for hints at negative emotions.

If asked what she'd consider her greatest asset as an idol, Takamina would answer that it's her ability to organize her time, and it is also something she is actively working to improve on. Due to that, she has gotten good at memorizing choreography and lyrics effectively, and rarely has moments where she doesn't have anything to do.

As an idol, she has also learnt to talk to people and infront of crowds. She did initially have a bit of stage fright, but due to experience, she's just as happy on stage as off stage. As Team A's captain, she's also developed leader skills.

Takamina is capable at self defense. Albeit her first bout with it was during the second round of her auditions, since then, she's regularly worked to improve, and is currently an able fighter. She is a decent LAS pilot, despite initially having troubles with it, she has gotten the hang of it. Her real forte is mic-sabers. Due to safety reasons, the management doesn't allow anyone to use more than one micsaber unless their swordmanship has developed far enough to allow that, and Minami has passed the test for it. She is able to dualwield with ease, and does always have an extra micsaber or two strapped to her leg underneath the uniform during performances.

Being born and bred on Atamistar, being able to swim is mandatory, and Minami is no exception. She has been swimming since she was a young child, and is now at a point where she has stated that she can swim as far as 10km straight if she is careful with her strength, but she is also good at swimming shorter distances at higher speeds. She does continue to swim as much as her schedule allows, and the pool is a rather safe bet to find her if she has the day off. She has no problems being comfortable in any body of water, and is capable of reading underwater currents in order to avoid getting caught in one. She is also able to hold her breath for a long while, as well as tow others back to shore.

To the point of it becoming a running joke, Minami is horrible at cooking. She's so uncoordinated in the kitchen that some members have claimed that it's basically an art at this point. AKBing00! exploits this frequently, whether it's to make fun of her inability in the kitchen, or as part of a muchaburi. Personally, she considers herself as a decent cook, and has no troubles eating whatever she's made, but this is, in general due to the fact that she has rather odd tastebuds; She can happily eat some things that others would never put anywhere near their mouth.

As a hobby, she has played piano when she was younger, and is still on an amateur level. She doesn't have as much time for it recently, but this is the reason she got to play a Keytar on Orchestra.

Minami was born, and grew up on Atamistar, where she lived with her family consisting of her mother and father, and her younger sister, Ameko. Other than normal child plights, Takamina never experienced any real heartache in her life. Her family was loving, she had friends, and it was in general a really carefree childhood.

When her sister came into the picture, Minami was 6 years old. Despite the age gap, the two got along great, spending a lot of time playing together. The age gap is also one of the reasons they never fought a lot when they were younger. Ameko was the one of the two siblings who first became entranced with idols, and as a consequence, forced Minami to dessup together and play pretend as idols. Minami never really cared for it all that much, but went along with it in order to entertain her younger sister. Similarly, the thought of actually becoming an idol never really occured to her.

Minami has been aware of AKB0048 and idols for about as long as she can remember. The group has always been pretty active on Atamistar, whether it'd be for photo shoots or for concerts, but Minami never really paid much attention to them. She was content listening to a song every now and again and being a very casual fan.

Being born on Atamistar, the beach will always be special to Minami, it being where she can be the most at ease. She also got to meet several of AKB0048's members before she herself became a member, due to the gravure shots being held at Atamistar from time to time. However, despite this, she didn’t feel like joining AKB0048 for the largest part of her child hood.
Minami has known about AKB0048 all her life, but for the majority of it, she was content with merely being a fan to support the group. This, however, changed at the age of 12 years, when she saw her first ever concert live. When she spoke with her family about it, they were very supportive and encouraged her to try to join, even if they were also a little bit concerned, seeing how the idol group hadn’t been very successful for the past couple years. She used the remaining time until the auditions opened to practise her singing and dancing, and although she wasn’t perfect by any means, she was accepted into the group, and honestly hasn't looked back since.

Minami got the fever of succession a couple days before her succession was announced. On the contrary to some other members, Takamina did not have an agressive fever. She mainly felt a bit sluggish and had a slight fever, and this meant that she was still able to partake in her normal activities.

She was one of the members whose succession was the most wanted by some members, there even being a campaign, "#AiForTakamina" (which Sasshi even added onto the large screen on the succession concert itself), created by some of them. Fans caught onto this as well, and many decided to join the campaign. Her succession concert was named “Ai wo Shinjiteru” as a nod to her own name, her part in Sore wa Yorokobi Desu, as well as the pun in general.

Akimoto Sayaka the 15th - Kouhai. They used to be in Team 00 together. They are both captains, and share a certain understanding of the extra work that entails.

Hatsune Hikari - Kouhai. Minami likes her, partly because how earnest Hikari is with her wishes.

Hirate Yurina the 7th - Kouhai. At the start, they were Senpai and Kouhai, however, due to how much time they’ve spent together as Regular Senbatsu and being the current top of AKB0048, they have become quite good friends. Playful banter between the two (often concerning Minami’s taste in food) is common. They are rivals of sorts. They used to be in Team 00 together.

Ryuuzaki Miyoko - They haven't spent a lot of time together, but Miyoko has yet to do anything that would upset Minami.

Sashihara Rino the 11th - Kouhai. Minami normally finds her antics amusing, but does at times think that Sasshi takes it a bit too far, and does commonly feel that Hikari-san is right in taking her phone, although she isn't entirely sure why Hikari-san doesn't give them back.

Matsui Jurina the 8th - Kouhai. Minami really likes watching her interact with Miyagi. She appreciates Honoka for her tendency to be random, and, as an extension of that, that things are never monotone with Honoka around. It makes everyday life more interesting. They used to be in Team 00 together.

Shimazaki Haruka the 11th - Kouhai. Minami and Paruru get along well, although Minami prefers Paruru the way she is offstage, even if she doesn't fault Paruru for it.

Watanabe Mayu Type 5 - Minami really likes watching her interact with Honoka. Minami respects Miyagi, and gets along with her well

Kagawa Sayuri / Sato Amina the 8th - Former successor and understudy from the same generation as Minami. They do not have very much contact anymore, due to Minami’s schedule, but Minami would love to catch up with the former successor some time.

Motomiya Hikari - Manager and producer, Minami and Hikari gets along rather well, seeing as they work a lot together. Minami does commonly feel that Hikari is right in taking her phone, although she isn't entirely sure why Hikari doesn't give them back.

Hashimoto Ayumi - Ever since Ayumi became the members' dance coach, Takamina has interacted with her regularly (albeit never really outside of the rehearsal room), and does does respect her. Ayumi does also act as Takamina's mother in Protocol Magi :ORIGIN.

Ooto Louis - Minami had heard of him before they met, although didn't pay him much attention. She knew he was acclaimed, but not much more than that. She respects him.

Takayama Mikoto - Minami's mother. She didn't want Minami to become a member of 00, because of the constant danger she would be in. Even so, she is a big supporter of hers, and urges Minami to chase her dreams.

Takayama Keiichiro - Minami’s father. He very much supports both his children in whatever they set their minds to, but is not always very good with expressing this; especially if said whatever happens to be even remotely dangerous. Minami describes him as a bit of a worrywart, but does so fondly.

Takayama Ameko - Minami’s 6 years younger sister. At times, much like all siblings, they fight with each other, usually when Minami thinks Ameko is being too insistent, or when Ameko feels like Minami isn’t spending enough time with her family. They love each other very much, and according to their mother, Minami has become Ameko’s hero and role model.

Minami loves her family very much, and does spend time with them at every given opportunity. She frequently facetimes with them, and keeps active conversations with them via messages.

Takayama is written 高山たかやま in Kanji.
高たか ('Taka') translates to “High” and 山やま ('Yama') translates to “Mountain”.

Ai is written 愛あい in Kanji.
愛あい ('Ai') translates to “Love”.

Her name could be translated as "Alpine Love".

During her time as an idol, Minami has recieved several nicknames, with the most promintent ones from her understudy time being TakAi (TakAi) or Aicchi (あいっち), TakAi being a combination of "Takayama" and "Ai" and Aicchi being a variation on her name. Honoka called her Airicchi (アイリッチあいりっち), a variation on her other nickname.
Upon succession, she inherited the nickname Takamina (たかみな) along with her new name.At times, some members refer to her as Captain, a nickname she can't fault them for, but isn't entirely comfortable with.